Becoming Like Little Children: Innocence and Purity

Becoming Like Little Children: Innocence and Purity

Matthew 18:2–4:

Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, and said, “Assuredly, I say

to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the

kingdom of heaven. Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the

kingdom of heaven.”

What It Means to Become a Child:

When our Lord Jesus Christ placed a child in the midst of His disciples, He was not praising

immaturity, but purity and humility. To “become as little children” is not to abandon wisdom or

responsibility, but to recover that inner place of innocence, trust, and simplicity of heart. A child

does not pretend to be self-sufficient but depends fully on his father. In the same way, the

Christian soul depends wholly on God.

Children are also vulnerable. They cry freely, confess their needs without shame, and look to

their parents with confidence. Likewise, we are called to approach God without pretense or

masks, telling Him honestly of our fears, our struggles, and even our sins. This is what it means

to be “converted”: to strip away pride and false strength, and to return to the purity of heart that

delights God.

God as Our True Father:

Unlike the idols of old who were distant, cruel, or indifferent, our God is a loving Father. He is

almighty, upholding the universe, yet He bends down to hear the simplest prayers of His

children. Some may wonder, “How can a God so great care about what I eat, what I wear, or

how I feel today?” Yet Christ Himself answers: “Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow

nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value

than they?” (Matthew 6:26).

If He clothes the lilies of the field with beauty greater than Solomon, how much more does He

care for His children? The fathers remind us that God’s providence extends even to the smallest

details. He knows the number of hairs on our heads (Luke 12:7). Therefore, nothing in our lives

is too small to entrust to Him.

Living as Children of God:

As children of God, we must not only believe in His care but live in the security of His care. A

child speaks freely to his father about joys, fears, and even trivial things. In the same way, we

should learn to speak with God throughout the day: to share with Him our struggles, our

victories, our hidden tears.

The saints modeled this simple, childlike trust. Pope Kyrillos VI prayed with childlike faith,

repeating the name of Jesus with love. St. Demiana, even as a young girl, confessed Christ with

boldness before governors. Countless martyrs of the “Era of the Martyrs” under Diocletian stood

before torturers with the innocence of children, pure in heart yet unshakable in trust.

To be a child of God also means to imitate Him. St. Paul says, “Be imitators of God as dear

children” (Ephesians 5:1). In teaching, this means guarding the five senses, dedicating our

eyes, ears, hands, and hearts to Christ, so that our whole life becomes consecrated to Him.

Humility and Purity:

In tradition, to become like a child is deeply tied to humility. The Desert Fathers often said, “If

you want to be great, learn to be the least.” Children do not exalt themselves but obey and trust.

Abba Isaac the Syrian said, “The humble man is never at a loss, for the Spirit Himself teaches

him.”

Purity is just as central. The Christian life is a lifelong struggle to return to the purity of baptism,

when we were clothed in white garments. Every fast, every prayer, every sacrament is meant to

restore that innocence. St. Athanasius wrote that in Christ, “we are renewed to the simplicity of

children, freed from the corruption of the old man.”

The Final Choice:

To be a child before God means to pray honestly, to love without calculation, to trust without

fear, and to forgive without keeping record. It means to be pure, humble, and transparent so that

our hearts are like open books before our Father in heaven.

But there is also a choice. Will we enter God’s presence with childlike purity, like Moses

speaking to God face to face, or will we shrink back in fear like Israel at Mount Sinai?

Exodus 20:18–19 (NKJV):

“Now all the people witnessed the thunderings, the lightning flashes, the sound of the trumpet,

and the mountain smoking; and when the people saw it, they trembled and stood afar off. Then

they said to Moses, ‘You speak with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest we

die.’”

The question remains: Will we be as Moses, speaking to God directly as His children, or as the

Israelites, standing afar off, content to watch others draw near?